Don't Be Fooled by Corporate Greenwashing

Corporations employ legions of marketing and advertising professionals to help them exploit trends and separate people from their disposable income. So it’s nice to know that there are groups like Boston’s Earthday Resources for Living Green out there working on behalf of the consumer.

If you’re not particularly concerned about where your money goes, then April 22, 1970 probably changed nothing for you. But for the growing number of environmentally conscious consumers in the world, that date -- the first ever Earth Day -- was a grand celebration of their commitment to the idea that the Earth is a sacred being in desperate need of our protection. Unfortunately, as it turns out, it was also a signal to corporate America that "green" consumers were a major niche market.

For the past eleven years, Earthday Resources has issued its Don’t Be Fooled Awards to the top ten "greenwashers" of the previous year. Greenwashing is defined as "disinformation disseminated by an organization so as to present an environmentally responsible public image." Not surprisingly, there are a number of organizations out there who have devised specious advertising campaigns to try and cash in on the more than $540 billion global market for products and services with low environmental impact.

The Don’t Be Fooled 2003 report does not consist solely of finger-pointing. There are also valuable tips for consumers attempting to evaluate the claims made in advertising and on the packaging materials for products they are considering buying. Based on the standards adopted by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) in 2002, the report dissects what it actually means to be "100% Organic" versus simply "Organic." Other tips include detailed breakdowns of the "Recycled," "Recyclable," "Degradable," "Eco Safe/Earth Smart," "Ozone Friendly," and "Reduced Materials" labels.

And the winners of this year’s Don’t Be Fooled Awards are ...

Altria Group, Inc.

The parent company of Philip Morris, maker of Marlboro brand cigarettes, would seemingly be a shoe-in for the award. And they are. But it isn’t so much the aggressiveness tobacco companies like Philip Morris have displayed in protecting their right to push tobacco on a new generation of consumers (the members of older generations seem to die at an alarming rate) that has garnered Altria a spot in this year’s awards. Rather, Earthday Resources seems to have recognized Altria due to its Kraft Foods unit, along with a public image campaign that made frequent use of brilliantly leafy trees, and other images of nature.

But what’s wrong with Kraft? According to the report, "Kraft is the largest food company in the U.S. and its use of genetically engineered ingredients contributes significantly to the problems resulting from these crops." Problems from genetically modified (GM) crops include a number of health and environmental risks, like unforeseen allergic reactions in some people who eat GM foods, and the frightening ability of GM crops to proliferate themselves -- even into carefully sequestered fields of non-GM crops!

Altria ads should have shown hideously deformed "Franken-trees" instead. Think about that the next time you go out of your way to eat organic food instead of Taco Bell taco shells, Post cereals, Boca Burgers, or Jell-O pudding.

Exxon Mobil

Now a company that specializes in the exploration- and production-side of the oil and gas business may seem like an obvious choice. But Exxon Mobil has contributed $100 million to the Global Climate and Energy Project, which seeks to develop clean energy technologies and ways to minimize greenhouse gases produced by the use of traditional fuels. So why do they deserve top greenwashing honors?